A guy I work for caught some members of the traveling community stealing diesel from his tank and gave them a good hiding (he's a big bloke and very handy) they came. Back the next night and punctured the tank then set fire to a load of pallets he had from building work stacked against the house not far away from the tank! He was lucky and saw the flames, managed to get his family out in time but it did some damage before the fire Brigade got there and put it out!
A mate a few months ago was sat at traffic lights waiting when someone opened the back doors on his van and grabbed a bag of kit, did a runner, he got out and ran after them! Meanwhile two other blokes emptied a load more into a van in another lane while telling the guy in the car behind my mates van that he didn't see anything! This was in broad daylight, with people all round. The police later said that he wasn't the first and that the vehicle they had used had been reported stolen and was also full of kit. They found it later on burnt out down a lane not far from the scene.
Another mate was sat at traffic lights again when a moped pulled up next to him with two lads on, the guy on the back jumps off and opens his van door holding a very large knife and announces that if he doesn't get out he will pull him out when he is dead. Again the police found the van some hours later on fire down a lane.
It's getting worse out there, people who do these kind of things know they can get away with it. It's not going to stop any time soon! And you can't do anything about it either as they will come after you and your family, or you end up arrested! Not even going to start on the police. They won't even go near the community of united nomadic traveling sods campsites for fear of getting a shoeing, and trying to get convictions if they do arrest them is near on impossible as they all lie together and say they weren't there and have a whole camp who will back them up!